Automatic window.



J. L. COMER.

AUTOMATIC WINDOW.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 5.1917

L kfi gfifi. Patented Nov. 27, 191?.

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INVENTOR ATTo R N EY J. L. COMER.

AUTOMATIC WINDOW. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 5.1917.

L2%8,26& Patented Nov. 2?, 1917.

Z SHEETSSHEET Z- INVENTOR WITNESSES 8; A Q wk BY FE Af/ WWI/W m ATTORNEY rtr eras arena carton JOHN L. COMER, 01! LEAKSVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA, ASSIGNOR OF oNE fiALF T0 X L. HEINER, OF LEAKSVILLIE, NQBTH CAROLINA.

AUTOMATIC WINDOW.

T0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN L. GoMER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Leaksville, in the county of Rockingham and State of North Carolina, have invented new and useful Improvements in Automatic Windows, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to closure operators,

; and more especially to'those adapted for application to a window; and the object of the same is to produce a device by means of which the lower sash ofa window may be raised and left raised, but if, during the absence of the owner from the house, a storm should arise with danger that rain may beat in at the window, the device is tripped and the sash permitted to automatically and slowly descend so as to close the window against the threatened danger.

Broadly this idea is carried out by hanging the sash on weights rather smaller than usual so that the sash overbalances the weights, and leading the sash cord through a mechanism by which it is held against movement under normal conditions but is tripped by the parting of a strip of paper when the air becomes moist by the presence of rain or snow creating a condition of excessive humidity.

Specifically the idea is carried out in the manner hereinafter more fully described and claimed and as shown in the drawings wherein Figure 1 is an elevation of this window from the outside, showing only the lower sash for sake of clearness of illustration, and indicating how the sash cords are rove over pulleys to' their weights.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged horizontal section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, showing the weather boarding on the outside and the plastering on the inside of the wall beneath the window sill, and giving a top plan view of the moving parts of my invention, located within a casing which is shown in section.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a train of Wheels mounted within their casing, the nearer side of the latter being removed and the sash cord being shown as extended around the grooved pulley.

Specification of Letters Iatent. Pa tentgdl Nqpv 2'? 3191153; Application filed June 5, 1917. were... 173,009.

. Fig. 4 is a .perspective detail of the trip,

mechanism which is to be located within a suitable casing and the exterior of the build mg, the casing in this instance being broken away.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional detail of the drum for containing the roll of paper.

structurally the wall is made up of an outer face 0 which may be weather boards orthe like, and an inner face I which may be plastering, and these faces are separated by the usual studs. At an appropriatepoint a window frame F is inset into the wall as usual, and in the frame move the sashes S whereof I have shown onlyv the lowermost. Sash cords C rise from this sash and are strung over appropriate pulleys, and weights W are attached to them. These weights must be a little lighter than usual so that their aggregated weight is less than that of the sash for a purpose which will be made clear below. The sash cords may of course be chains or whatever is desirable. The upper sash may be exactly balanced by its weights. There may be a sash lock or fasr tener of appropriate type between the meeting rails of the sashes, and if desirable this could be such that its members would spring into engagement when the lower sash S descends as yet to be explained. This device in no way interferes with the window shade or curtains on the interior, or with the blinds or awning on the exterior, and therefore these parts are not illustrated. Also I might here remark that, whereas my device may be built at the time the building is erected, it is quite possible to apply it to the lower sash of a'window already in place, as will be seen from what follows.

Within a casing 1'(see Figs. 2 and 3) is journaled a shaft 2 on which is mounted a grooved pulley 3 for the sash cord C, a ratchet wheel 4, and alongside the same a gear 5 which is loose on the shaft whereas the pulley and the wheel are fast thereon. A spring-pressed pawl 6 is pivoted to the wheel 5 and engages the teeth of the ratchet as seen in Fig. 3. The gear 5 meshes with,

tween the inner and outer facings of the wall beneath the window sill about in the position seen in Fig. 1, and the sash cord 0 leads upward from the sash S, over a pulley a, then down beneath a pulley b, then around the grooved pulley 3, then outward and under another pulley c, upward over av fourth pulley d, and downward to the weight W. The other sash cord leads upward from the sash S and over its own pulley e and direct to its weight. The sash is heavier than both weights.

Slidably mounted through holes in the casing 1 is a pushrod 11 having a head or button 12 at its inner end, a bend or crank in its body constituting the brake shoe 13, and a catch 14 at its outerend; and an expansive spring 15 is coiled on this rod between the outer wall of the casing and a pin 16 and presses the rod in a direction to throw its shoe 13 normally against the side of the brake wheel 9 and simultaneously to project its button to the interior of the house.

On the outer facing O of the wall is mounted a base plate 20 having ears 21 in which is pivoted an upright shaft 22 at the angle of a bell-crank lever 23, and the inner arm of this lever carries a spring finger 2 adapted to engage the catch 14, while a spring 25 coiled on the shaft 22 is of greater power than the spring 15 and is adapted, when the finger engages the catch, to move the push-rod outward and throw the shoe 13 off the brake wheel 9. The outer arm of the lever 23 carries a clip 26 with which in Fig. 4 a strip 27 of paper is shown engaged. This strip is unwound from a roll 28 housed within a two-part casing 29 whose lower part is carried on a bracket 30 projecting outward from the plate 20, and Whose upper part has a stud 31 projecting through an opening 32 in the lower part of the casing so as to constitute a tension device under which the strip 27 is moved when it is withdrawn from the roll 28. Obviously all of the elements carried by the base plate 20 are outside the building and subject to the humidity of the atmosphere prevailing.

With this construction of parts, the operation is as follows: When the sash S is raised, the sash cord rotates the ratchet wheel 4 in a direction to cause its teeth to pass under the pawl 6 idly, and the gears 5 and 7 do not tend to rotate the brake wheel 9. When the sash has been raised and is released, its tendency to descend because it overbalances its weights imparts to the ratchet wheel4 a tendency to rotate in the opposite direction, but this is resisted by the pressure of the brake shoe 13 against the wheel 9. When it is desired to lower the sash, all the operator has to do is to press on the button 12 which moves the push rod 11 and disengages the shoe from the brake wheel, and then he can either let down the sash by hand or permit it to descend automatically. Hence the sash can be raised or lowered or stopped at any point without interfering with this mechanism.

When now it is desired to open the window by raising the sash S, and the operator expects to leave the house and permit the window to remain open during his absence, it'is only necessary to raise the window in the manner already described, turn the bell crank lever 23 against the tension of its spring, engage its finger 24 behind the catch 14 and attach a strip 27 of paper to the clip 26. The tension of the spring 25 innnediately puts the strip 27 under strain, but as long as the paper remains dry it resists this tension and prevents the spring 25 from overcoming the spring 15. 'Therefore the pushrod remains at its innermost position with the shoe 13 in contact with the brake wheel 9, and the sash can not descend. Now let us assume that after the operator has left home, a storm comes up and moisture softens the strip 27 'of paper. Immediately it parts somewhere between the clip and the casing 29, the spring 25 acts to swing the lever 23, the pushrod 1:1 is drawn outward, and the shoe 13 is removed from the brake Wheel 9; accordingly said brake wheel being freed, may now rotate, and this permits the rotation of the two shafts and the sash cord pulley 3, so that the sash S may descend and the weights W rise slowly. Therefore the parting of the strip of paper Jermits the automatic closing of the window ust at a time when it is needed, and the operator returning home finds the window closed against the admission of rain or snow to the house. When the device is again to be set, the strip is withdrawn through the tension at 31, 32 and unwound a little farther from the roll 28; and as at rare intervals this roll must be replenished, I

prefer that it be mounted within a watertight casing 29 so that it is not affected by humidity in the atmosphere.

What is claimed as new is 1. In a window structure, the combination with a Vertically movable sash, a lifting weight lighter than the sash, and a cord connecting them; of a pulley around which said cord is rove, a brake wheel operatively connected with the shaft of said pulley, a spring-pressed brake bearing against said wheel, and a push-button for releasing the brake.

2. In a window structure, the combination with a vertically movable sash, a lifting weight lighter than the sash, and a cord connecting them; of .a pulley around which said cord is rove, a brake wheel operatively connected with the shaft of said pulley, a pushrod slidably mounted in line with the axis of said brake wheel and having a shoe adapted to bear against the same, a spring normally moving the rod to apply the brake shoe, and a button on the exposed end of said rod whereby pressure on such button will remove the brake-shoe from the wheel.

3. In a window structure, the combination with a vertically movable sash, a lifting weight lighter than the sash, and a cord connecting them; of a pulley around which said cord is rove,v a shaft for said pulley, a ratchet wheel fast thereon and a gear wheel loose thereon adjacent the ratchet, a springpressed pawl on the gear engaging the ratchet, a second shaft having a gear engaging that first named and also having a brakewheel, a brake-shoe normally contacting with the brake-wheel, and manually operable mechanism for throwing it out of such contact.

4. In a window structure, the combination with a vertically movable sash, a lifting weight lighter than the sash, and a cord connecting them; of a pulley around which said cord is rove, a shaft for said pulley, a ratchet wheel fast thereon and a gear wheel loose thereon adjacent the ratchet, a springpressed pawl on the gear engaging the ratchet, a second shaft having a gear engaging that first-named and also having a brake-wheel, a brake-shoe normally contact-' ing with the brake-wheel, a pushrod carrying said shoe and having manually operable mechanism at one extremity and a catch at the other extremity, tripping mechanism for engaging said catch, and a soluble strand disposed out of doors and holding said tripping mechanism from action until the strand breaks under the influence of moisture.

5. In a window structure, the combination with a vertically movable sash, its cord, a lifting weight lighter than the sash, a pulley over which-the cord is rove, a rotary brake wheel, and connections between the shaft of said wheel and the shaft of the pulley, said connections including a ratchet; of a pushrod slidable through the wall adjacent the window 'and having a button on its inner end, an elbow in its body constituting a brakeshoe, and a catch on its outer end, a spring bearing the shoe normally against the brake-wheel, tripping mechanism for engaging said catch, and a soluble strand disposed out of doors and holding said tripping mechanism from action until the strand breaks under the influence of moisture.

6. In a window structure, theccombination with a vertically movable sash, its cord, a lifting weight lighter than the sash, a pulley over which the cord is rove, a rotary brake wheel, and connections between the shaft of said wheel and the shaft of the pulley, said connections including a ratchet; of a push-, rod slidable through said wall adjacent the window and having a button on its inner end, an elbow in its body constituting a moisture.

ment connected at one end with a fixed support and attached at the other end to the purpose set forth.

7. In a-window structure, the combination with a vertically movable sash, its cord, a lifting weight lighter than the sash, a pulley over which the cord is rove, a rotary brake wheel, and connections between the shaft of said wheel and the shaft of the pulley, said connections including a ratchet; of a pushrod slidable through the wall adjacent the window and having a button on itsinner end, an elbow in its body constituting a brake-shoe, and a catch on its outer end, a spring bearing the shoe normally against the brake-wheel, a bell crank lever standing outdoors and pivoted at its angle, one arm having a spring finger adapted to engage said catch, a spring stronger than the brake spring and tending to swing the bell-crank lever to overcome said brake spring and release the brake, a water-tight casing also supported out of doors, a roll of paper strip mounted therein, a tension device 'on the casing through which the stripis drawn, and a clip on the other arm of said bell-crank lever with which the end of said strip may be connected, for the purpose set forth.

8. In a window structure, the combination with a vertically movable sash, a lifting weight lighter than the sash, a cord connect-. ing them, a pulley over which the cord is rove, and brake mechanism for checking the rotation of said pulley; of a spring for applying the brake, a trip mechanism for releasing the brake, a spring operating said trip-mechanism and stronger than the brakespring, a water-tight casing disposed out of doors and containing a roll of paper in strip form, a tension device through which this strip is led from the casing, and means for attaching the end of the strip to said trip mechanism whereby the strip prevents the action of the trip-spring until the strip softens and breaks under the influence of 9. In a window structure, the combination with a vertically movable sash, its cord, a lifting weight lighter than the sash, a pulley over which the cord is rove, a rotary brake wheel, and connections between the shaft of said wheel and the shaft of the pulley; of a pushrod slidable through the wall adjacent the window and, having an elbow in its body constituting a brakeshoe and a catch on its outer end, a spring bearing the other arm of said bell-crank lever, for the j shoe normally against the brake-Wheel, a, mounted therein, and a. clip on the other lever pivoted at its midlength, one arm havarm of said lever with which the end of said ing a spring finger adapted to engage said strip may be connected, for the purpose set 10 catch, a spring stronger than the brake foi'th.

- spring and tending to swing this lever to In testimony whereof I aifix my signature.

release the brake, a water-tight casing supported out of doors, a roll of paper strip JOHN L. GOMER. 

